KR102475664B1 - Acoustic transducer, wearable sound device and manufacturing method of acoustic transducer - Google Patents

Abstract

The acoustic transducer is disposed within or within the wearable sound device. The acoustic transducer includes a first anchor structure and a first flap. The first flap includes a first end and a second end. The first end is fixed by the first anchor structure, and the second end is configured to perform a first up and down movement to temporarily form a vent. The first flap divides the space into a first volume to be connected to the ear canal and a second volume to be connected to the periphery of the wearable sound device. The ear canal and its surroundings are connected through a temporarily open vent.

Description

Acoustic transducer, wearable sound device and manufacturing method of acoustic transducer

This application is based on U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/050,763, filed July 11, 2020, U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/051,885, filed July 14, 2020, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/171,919, filed April 7, 2021. claiming the benefit of, all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present application relates to an acoustic transducer, a wearable sound device, and a method of manufacturing an acoustic transducer, and more particularly, to an acoustic transducer capable of suppressing an occlusion effect, an acoustic transducer, and a method of manufacturing the acoustic transducer.

Today, wearable sound devices, such as in-ear (inserted into the ear canal) earbuds, on-ear or over-ear earphones, etc., commonly produce or reproduce sound. used to receive Magnet and moving coil (MMC) based microspeakers have been developed for decades and are widely used in many of these devices. A micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) sound transducer using a recent semiconductor manufacturing process can be a sound generating/receiving component of a wearable sound device.

The occlusion effect is due to the confined volume of the ear canal creating a sound pressure that is perceived as loud by the listener. For example, a listener performs a specific action that produces bone conduction sound (eg, walking, jogging, talking, eating, touching an acoustic transducer, etc.) and uses a wearable sound device (eg, a wearable sound device It is filled in the ear canal). The occlusion effect is particularly strong for bass due to the difference between acceleration-based sound pressure level (SPL) generation (SPL ∝ a = dD ² /dt ² ) and compression-based SPL generation (SPL ∝ D). For example, a displacement of only 1 μm at 20 Hz results in SPL = 1 μm/25 mm atm = 106 dB in an occluded ear canal (25 mm is the average length of an adult ear canal). Therefore, when the occlusion effect occurs, the listener hears the occlusion noise and the quality of the listener experience deteriorates.

In the traditional technology, since the wearable sound device has an airflow channel between the ear canal and the surroundings outside the device, the pressure due to the occlusion effect can be released from this airflow channel to suppress the occlusion effect. However, the SPL at lower frequencies (e.g., less than 500 Hz) in the frequency response shows a significant drop because the airflow channel is always present. For example, if an existing wearable sound device uses a typical 115dB speaker driver, the SPL at 20Hz is much lower than 110dB. Also, the larger the size of the fixed vent configured to form the airflow channel, the greater the SPL drop and the less waterproof and dustproof it is.

In some cases, traditional wearable sound devices may use stronger than typical 115dB speaker drivers to compensate for SPL loss at low frequencies due to the presence of airflow channels. For example, assuming an SPL loss of 20 dB, the speaker driver required to maintain the same 115 dB SPL with an airflow channel would be 135 dB SPL when used in a closed ear canal. However, for 10x stronger bass output, the speaker membrane movement must also increase 10x. This means that the gap between the height of the coil and the magnetic flux of the speaker driver must be increased by a factor of 10. Therefore, it is difficult for existing wearable sound devices with strong speaker drivers to be small in size and light in weight.

Therefore, there is a need to improve the prior art to suppress the occlusion effect.

Accordingly, the main object of the present invention is to provide an acoustic transducer capable of suppressing the occlusion effect, and to provide a wearable acoustic device having an acoustic transducer and a manufacturing method of the acoustic transducer.

One embodiment of the present invention provides an acoustic transducer disposed within or disposed within a wearable sound device. The acoustic transducer includes a first anchor structure and a first flap. The first flap includes a first end and a second end. The first end is fixed by the first anchor structure, and the second end is configured to perform a first up and down movement to temporarily form a vent. The first flap divides the space into a first volume to be connected to the ear canal and a second volume to be connected to the periphery of the wearable sound device. The ear canal and its surroundings are connected through a temporarily open vent.

Another embodiment of the present invention provides a wearable sound device including a sound transducer and a housing structure. The acoustic transducer is configured to perform acoustic conversion. An acoustic transducer includes at least one anchor structure, a film structure and an actuator. The film structure is fixed by the anchor structure. An actuator is disposed on the film structure, and the actuator is configured to actuate the film structure to temporarily form a vent. The housing structure includes a first housing opening and a second housing opening, and the acoustic transducer is disposed within the housing structure and between the first housing opening and the second housing opening. A space formed in the housing structure is divided into a first volume and a second volume by the film structure, the first volume being connected to the first housing opening, and the second volume being connected to the second housing opening. The first volume and the second volume are connected through a temporarily open vent.

These and other objects of the present invention will not appear in doubt to those skilled in the art after reading the various drawings and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments illustrated therein.

1 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a schematic diagram of a cross-sectional view showing an acoustic transducer according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a schematic diagram in cross section showing an acoustic transducer and a housing structure according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a schematic diagram showing a first membrane in a first mode according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a schematic diagram of a cross-sectional view showing a first membrane in a second mode according to another embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a schematic diagram showing several examples of relative position pairs on different sides of a slit according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a schematic diagram illustrating the frequency response of multiple examples according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a schematic diagram of a cross-sectional view showing a first membrane in a first mode according to another embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a schematic diagram showing a wearable sound device having a sound transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention.
10 to 12 are schematic views in cross-section illustrating another type of acoustic transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention.
13 is a schematic diagram of a cross-sectional view showing an acoustic transducer according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
14 is a schematic diagram of a cross-sectional view showing an acoustic transducer according to another second embodiment of the present invention.
15 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
16 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
17 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.
18 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.
19 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 20 is an enlarged view of the central portion of FIG. 19 .
21 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.
22 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention.
23 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention.
24 to 30 are schematic diagrams showing structures in various stages of a method for manufacturing an acoustic transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention.
31 is a schematic diagram showing a cross-sectional view of an acoustic transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In order to provide those skilled in the art with a better understanding of the present invention, preferred embodiments and typical material or range parameters for the main components will be detailed in the following description. These preferred embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings with numbered elements to explain in detail the contents and effects to be achieved. The drawing is a simplified schematic diagram, and the materials and parameter ranges of the main components are examples based on the current technology, and thus the configurations related to the present invention to provide a clearer explanation of the basic structure, implementation or operation method of the present invention. Only elements and combinations are shown. Components will in practice be more complex and the range of parameters or materials used may evolve as future technology advances. In addition, for convenience of description, components shown in the drawings may not represent the actual number, shape, and dimensions. Details can be adjusted according to design requirements.

In the following description and claims, the terms “comprises”, “includes” and “has” are used in an open-ended manner and should therefore be interpreted to mean “including but not limited to”. Thus, when the terms "comprises", "includes" and/or "has" are used in the description of the present invention, the corresponding features, areas, steps, operations and/or components refer to the presence, but only one or It is not limited to the presence of a plurality of corresponding features, regions, steps, operations and/or components.

In the following description and claims, when "component A1 is formed by component B1", B1 is present in the formation of component A1 or B1 is used in the formation of component A1, and one or more other features, regions, steps, Actions and/or components are not excluded from the formation of A1 components.

In the following description and claims, the term "substantially" generally means that small variations may or may not exist. For example, the terms "substantially parallel" and "substantially along" mean that the angle between the two components may be less than or equal to a certain threshold value, for example 10 degrees, 5 degrees, 3 degrees or 1 degree. . For example, the term "substantially aligned" means that the deviation between the two components may be less than or equal to a certain difference threshold, eg 2 μm or 1 μm. For example, the term "substantially equal" means that the deviations are, for example, within 10% of a given value or range, or within 5%, 3%, 2%, 1% or 0.5% of a given value or range. means

Terms such as first, second, third, etc. may be used to describe various components, but these components are not limited by the terms. The term is used only to distinguish a component from other components in the specification and, unless otherwise specified in the specification, the term has no relation to the order of manufacture. The claims may use the terms first, second, third, etc., in relation to the order in which elements are claimed without using the same terms. Thus, in the following description, the first element may be the second element in the claim.

It should be noted that technical features of different embodiments described below may be replaced, recombined, or mixed with each other to constitute other embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

In the present invention, an acoustic transducer may perform an acoustic conversion, wherein the acoustic conversion converts a signal (eg, an electrical signal or other suitable type of signal) into an acoustic wave, or an acoustic wave into a signal (with another suitable type). For example, an electrical signal). In some embodiments, the acoustic transducer may be, but is not limited to, a sound generating device, speaker, micro speaker, or other suitable device for converting electrical signals into acoustic waves. In some embodiments, the acoustic transducer may be, but is not limited to, an acoustic measurement device, a microphone, or other suitable device for converting acoustic waves into electrical signals.

In the following, the acoustic transducer may be, but is not limited to, an exemplary sound generating device configured to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present invention. Hereinafter, the acoustic transducer may be disposed in, for example, a wearable sound device (eg, an in-ear device), but is not limited thereto. Operation of the acoustic transducer means that acoustic conversion is performed by the acoustic transducer (eg, acoustic waves are generated by operating the acoustic transducer with an electrical drive signal).

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3 , FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view illustrating an acoustic transducer according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a schematic diagram of a cross-sectional view showing an acoustic transducer according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a schematic diagram in cross section showing an acoustic transducer and a housing structure according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the acoustic transducer 100 includes a base BS. The base BS can be rigid or flexible, and the base BS can be made of silicon, germanium, glass, plastic, quartz, sapphire, metal, polymer (eg polyimide (PI), polyethylene, terephthalate (PET)). )), any other suitable material or combination thereof. For example, the base BS may include a laminate (eg, copper clad laminate (CCL)), a land grid array (LGA) board, or any other suitable board that includes a conductive material. It may be a circuit board, but is not limited thereto.

1 and 2, the base BS has a horizontal plane SH parallel to direction X and direction Y, and direction Y is not parallel to direction X (e.g., direction X may be perpendicular to direction Y). . Note that direction X and direction Y of the present invention can be regarded as horizontal directions.

The acoustic transducer 100 includes a film structure FS and at least one anchor structure 140 disposed on a horizontal surface SH of the base BS, the film structure FS being fixed by the anchor structure 140. do. As shown in FIG. 1 , the acoustic transducer 100 may include four anchor structures 140 , and the film structure FS includes the first membrane 110 . The anchor structure 140 is disposed outside the first membrane 110 and connected to at least one of the outer edges 110e of the first membrane 110 . Here, the outer edge 110e of the first membrane 110 defines the boundary of the first membrane 110 . For example, the anchor structure 140 may surround the first membrane 110 and be connected to all outer edges 110e of the first membrane 110, but is not limited thereto.

In the operation of the acoustic transducer 100, the first membrane 110 may be operated to have motion. In this embodiment, the first membrane 110 may be operated to move up and down, but is not limited thereto. For example, in FIG. 2 , when the first membrane 110 is actuated, the first membrane 110 may be deformed into the deformed type 110Df, but is not limited thereto. In the present invention, the terms "moving up" and "moving down" mean movement substantially along a direction Z parallel to the normal direction of the first membrane 110 or along a direction Z parallel to the normal direction of the horizontal plane SH. (ie direction Z may be perpendicular to direction X and direction Y).

During operation of the acoustic transducer 100, the anchor structure 140 may be fixed. That is, the anchor structure 140 may be a fixed end (or fixed edge) relative to the first membrane 110 during operation of the acoustic transducer 100 .

The first membrane 110 (film structure FS) and anchor structure 140 may comprise any suitable material(s). In some embodiments, the first membrane 110 (film structure FS) and anchor structure 140 are individually made of silicon (eg, monocrystalline silicon or polycrystalline silicon), a silicon compound (eg, silicon carbide, silicon oxide). ), germanium, germanium compounds (eg, gallium nitride or gallium arsenide), gallium, gallium compounds, stainless steel, or combinations thereof, but is not limited thereto. The first membrane 110 and the anchor structure 140 may have the same material or different materials.

In addition, since the first membrane 110 and the anchor structure 140 exist, the first chamber CB1 may exist between the base BS and the first membrane 110 . In this embodiment, the base BS may further include a back vent BVT (eg, the back vent BVT shown in FIG. 3 ), and the first chamber CB1 may generate sound through the back vent BVT. It can be connected to the back of the converter 100 (ie, the back of the space of the base BS).

The acoustic transducer 100 includes a first actuator 120 disposed on the first membrane 110 (film structure FS) and configured to actuate the first membrane 110 (film structure FS). For example, in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the first actuator 120 may contact the first membrane 110 , but is not limited thereto. Also, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the first actuator 120 may not completely overlap the first membrane 110 , but is not limited thereto. Optionally, in FIG. 2 , the first actuator 120 may be disposed on and overlapping the anchor structure 140 , but is not limited thereto. In another embodiment, the first actuator 120 may not overlap the anchor structure 140 as shown in the Z-direction perspective of FIG. 1 , but is not limited thereto.

The first actuator 120 has a monotonic electromechanical converting function to the movement of the membrane 110 along the Z direction. In some embodiments, first actuator 120 may include, but is not limited to, a piezoelectric actuator, an electrostatic actuator, a nanoscopic-electrostatic-drive (NED) actuator, an electromagnetic actuator, or other suitable actuator. don't For example, in one embodiment, the first actuator 120 may include a piezoelectric actuator, which may include, for example, two electrodes and a layer of piezoelectric material disposed between the electrodes (eg, lead zirco may include lead zriconate titanate (PZT), wherein the layer of piezoelectric material may actuate the first membrane 110 based on a drive signal (eg, a drive voltage) received by the electrode; For example, in another embodiment, the first actuator 120 may include an electromagnetic actuator (eg, a planar coil), and the electromagnetic actuator may generate a received drive signal (eg, a driving signal). current) and a magnetic field (ie, the first membrane 110 can be actuated by electromagnetic force), but is not limited thereto. , the first actuator 120 may include an electrostatic actuator (eg, a conductive plate) or a NED actuator, wherein the electrostatic actuator or NED actuator is configured to generate a received drive signal (eg, a drive voltage) and an electrostatic field. (ie, the first membrane 110 may be actuated by electrostatic force), but is not limited thereto.

In this embodiment, the first membrane 110 and the first actuator 120 may be configured to perform acoustic transduction. That is, acoustic waves are generated by the movement of the first membrane 110 operated by the first actuator 120, and the movement of the first membrane 110 is related to the sound pressure level (SPL) of the acoustic wave.

The first actuator 120 can actuate the first membrane 110 to generate an acoustic wave based on the received drive signal(s). The acoustic wave corresponds to the input audio signal, and the driving signal corresponds to (related to) the input audio signal.

In some embodiments, the acoustic wave, input audio signal and drive signal have the same frequency, but are not limited thereto. That is, the acoustic transducer 100 generates sound at the frequency of sound (i.e., the acoustic transducer 100 generates acoustic waves according to the zero-mean-flow assumption of the classical acoustic wave theorem). ), but is not limited thereto.

1 to 3, the film structure FS of the acoustic transducer 100 includes at least one slit 130, and the slit 130 includes a first sidewall S1 and a first sidewall ( It may have a second sidewall (S2) facing S1). In the present invention, the spacing 130P of the slits 130 exists between the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 in a plane parallel to the X and Y directions (that is, the spacing of the slits 130 ( 130P) is parallel to the horizontal plane SH of the base BS, where the width of the gap 130P of the slit 130 can be designed according to the requirement(s) (for example, the width can be about 1 μm, but In the present invention, the slit 130 temporarily vents 130T between the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 based on the driving signal received from the first actuator 120. (ie, the film structure FS is configured to operate to temporarily form a vent 130T), wherein the opening of the vent 130T is in direction Z, and the opening of the vent 130T is forms a surface that is substantially perpendicular to direction X and direction Y. In the description and claims of the present invention, "gap 130P" is in a plane parallel to direction X and direction Y, and has a width along slit 130. means the space in the direction (i.e., the space between the first side wall S1 and the second side wall S2 in a plane parallel to the direction X and the direction Y); "bent 130T" in the direction X and the direction Y It means the space between the first side wall (S1) and the second side wall (S2) in the vertical direction Z (direction normal to the horizontal plane (SH) of the base BS).

Slit 130 may be of any suitable type as long as it is capable of creating a vent 130T between first sidewall S1 and second sidewall S2 based on a drive signal received by first actuator 120. have.

Slit 130 may be placed in any suitable location. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1 , the first membrane 110 may have a slit 130 (ie, the slit 130 is formed inside the first membrane 110 so that the first membrane ( 110), the first membrane 110 includes, but is not limited to, the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130. That is, in this embodiment, the first membrane 110 performing acoustic conversion may be configured to be operated to form a vent 130T, and the vent 130T is formed due to the slit 130 .

In another embodiment (eg, FIG. 10 ), the slit 130 may be a boundary of the first membrane 110 , and the first membrane 110 includes the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130 . and may not include the second sidewall S2. The slit 130 and the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130 may be one of outer edges 110e of the first membrane 110, but are not limited thereto.

In the present invention, the number of slits 130 included in the acoustic transducer 100 may be adjusted according to requirements. For example, as shown in FIG. 1 , the acoustic transducer 100 may include four slits 130a, 130b, 130c, and 130d, and the first membrane 110 may include slits 130a, 130b, and 130c. , 130d) (i.e., each slit 130 divides the first membrane 110 into two membrane parts), but , but is not limited thereto. In Figure 1, membrane portion 112a is between slits 130a and 130d, and membrane portion 112b is between slits 130a and 130b, and so on. Correspondingly, the first actuator 120 includes four actuating portions 120a, 120b, 120c, and 120d respectively disposed on membrane portions 112a, 112b, 112c, and 112d. do.

Accordingly, the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130 may each belong to different membrane parts of the first membrane 110 . Taking the slit 130a as an example, the slit 130a is formed between the membrane portions 112a and 112b, and therefore, the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130a are respectively the membrane portion ( 112a, 112b). In other words, the membrane part 112a and the actuating part 120a are on one side of the slit 130a, and the membrane part 112b and the actuating part 120b are on the other side of the slit 130a. For example, since point C is on the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130a and point D is on the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130a, point C and point D are respectively membrane portion 112a, 112b) and are separated by a gap 130P of the slit 130a.

In the present invention, the shape/pattern of the slit 130 is not limited. For example, slit 130 can be a straight slit, a curved slit, a combination of straight slits, a combination of curved slits, or a combination of straight slit(s) and curved slit(s). In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the slit 130 may be, but is not limited to, a curved slit. In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the slit 130 may extend from the corner 110R of the first membrane 110 towards the central portion of the first membrane 110 , for example. . In this embodiment, the curvature of the slit 130 may increase as the slit 130 extends from the edge 110R of the first membrane 110 to the central portion of the first membrane 110, and accordingly, the slit 130 ) may be formed as a hook pattern, but is not limited thereto. Specifically, taking the slit 130a as an example, the first radius of curvature at point A on the slit 130a is smaller than the second radius of curvature at point B on the slit 130a, where point A is a corner compared to point B ( 110R) (i.e., the first length along slit 130a between point A and corner 110R is greater than the second length along slit 130a between point B and corner 110R); Not limited to this. In addition, as shown in FIG. 1 , the slit 130 may extend inward from the first membrane 110 to form a vortex pattern, but is not limited thereto.

In another aspect, as shown in FIG. 3 , the slit 130 may divide the first membrane 110 (film structure FS) into two flaps facing each other. That is, the two membrane portions of the first membrane 110 divided by the slit 130 may be a first flap and a second flap, respectively, and the first sidewall S1 belongs to the first flap and the second sidewall ( S2) may belong to the second flap. The first flap may include a first end and a second end (also referred to as a free end), the first end being anchored by one anchor structure 140, and the second end (ie free end) may be configured to form a vent 130T by performing a first vertical movement (ie, the other end of the first flap may move vertically). The second flap may include a first end and a second end (also referred to as a free end), the first end being anchored by one anchor structure 140, and the second end (ie free end) may be configured to form a vent 130T by performing a second vertical movement (ie, the other end of the second flap may move vertically). The movement of the free end of the second flap may be different (eg, in the embodiment of FIG. 4 ) or opposite (eg, in the embodiment of FIG. 8 ) than the movement of the free end of the first flap. .

Taking slit 130a formed between membrane portions 112a and 112b in FIG. 1 as an example, the first sidewall S1 of slit 130a may be on the free end of the first flap (i.e., point C is may be at the second end of the first flap), the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130a may be on the free end of the second flap (i.e., point D is at the second end of the second flap). may be), but are not limited thereto.

In addition, the slit 130 can relieve residual stress of the first membrane 110, and the residual stress is generated during the manufacturing process of the first membrane 110 or is originally present in the first membrane 110. do.

1 and 2, due to the arrangement of the slits 130, the first membrane 110 optionally includes a coupling plate 114 connected to the membrane portions 112a, 112b, 112c and 112d. can do. In this embodiment, all membrane portions 112a, 112b, 112c, and 112d are coupled to coupling plate 114, and coupling plate 114 surrounded by membrane portions 112a, 112b, 112c, and 112d (i.e., couple ring plate 114 is the central portion) and/or connected to slit 130, but is not limited thereto. For example, but not limited to, coupling plate 114 is connected only to membrane portions 112a, 112b, 112c, and 112d. For example, in FIG. 1 , the first actuator 120 may not overlap with the coupling plate 114 in the Z direction (normal direction of the horizontal plane SH of the base BS), but is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, since the coupling plate 114 is present, even if the structural strength of the first membrane 110 is weakened due to the formation of the slit 130, the possibility of breakage of the first membrane 110 can be reduced and/or 1 membrane 110 can be prevented from breaking during manufacture. In other words, the coupling plate 114 may maintain the structural strength of the first membrane 110 at a certain level.

Due to the existence of the slits 130 , the first membrane 110 may be considered to include a plurality of spring structures formed due to the slits 130 . 1 and 2 , the spring structure is considered to be connected between the coupling plate 114 and the portion of the first membrane 110 that overlaps the first actuator 120 . Due to the presence of the spring structure, the displacement of the first membrane 110 can be increased and/or the first membrane 110 can be elastically deformed during operation of the acoustic transducer 100 .

In this embodiment, the acoustic transducer 100 may optionally include a chip disposed on the horizontal surface SH of the base BS, where the chip is a film structure FS (first membrane 110 and slit(s) (including 130), anchor structure(s) 140, and first actuator 120. The manufacturing method of the chip is not limited. For example, in this embodiment, the chip may be formed as a Micro Electro Mechanical System (MEMS) chip by at least one semiconductor process, but is not limited thereto.

Note that the first membrane 110, the slit(s) 130, the first actuator 120 and the anchor structure 140 of the present invention may be considered as a first unit U1.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the acoustic transducer 100 is disposed within a housing structure HSS inside the wearable sound device. 3 , the housing structure HSS may have a first housing opening HO1 and a second housing opening HO2, wherein the first housing opening HO1 may be connected to an external auditory canal of a user of the wearable sound device, The second housing opening HO2 may be connected to the surrounding environment of the wearable sound device, and the film structure FS is between the first housing opening HO1 and the second housing opening HO2. The periphery of the wearable sound device may not be located inside the ear canal (eg, the periphery of the wearable sound device may be directly connected to the space outside the ear. In addition, in FIG. 3 , the first chamber CB1 is connected to the base BS Since it may exist between the first membrane 110 (film structure FS), the first chamber CB1 surrounds the wearable sound device through the back vent BVT of the base BS and the second housing opening HO2 of the housing structure HSS. can be connected with

As shown in FIG. 3 , the first membrane 110 (the film structure FS including the first flap and the second flap) divides the space formed in the housing structure HSS into a first volume VL1, The wearable sound device may be connected to the user's ear canal, and the second volume VL2 is connected to the periphery of the wearable sound device. Therefore, the vent (130T) is operated by the first actuator 120 in the direction Z (the normal direction of the horizontal surface SH of the base BS) the first sidewall (S1) of the slit 130, that is, the freedom / freedom of the first flap 2 end) and the second sidewall S2 (ie, the free/second end of the second flap), the first volume VL1 is connected to the second volume VL2 through the vent 130T. Therefore, the periphery of the wearable sound device and the ear canal of the user of the wearable sound device are connected to each other. That is, the periphery of the wearable sound device and the external auditory canal are connected through the vent 130T that is temporarily opened when the first membrane 110 is operated. Conversely, the Benz 130T has a first sidewall S1 (ie, free/second end of the first flap) and a second sidewall S2 (ie, free/second end of the second flap) of the slit 130 in direction Z. second end), since the first volume VL1 is substantially separated from the second volume VL2, the periphery of the wearable sound device and the ear canal of the user of the wearable sound device are substantially separated from each other. That is, when the vent 130T is not formed and/or when the vent 130T is closed, the surroundings of the wearable sound device and the ear canal of the user of the wearable sound device are substantially separated (isolated).

The “vent 130T is closed” state means that the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130 in FIG. 3 (ie, the free/second end of the first flap) is the second sidewall of the slit 130 in FIG. 3 ( S2) (i.e., the free/second end of the second flap) and partially or completely overlapping in the horizontal direction, and "the vent 130T is open" or equivalently a "vent 130T is formed" state In FIG. 3, the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130 does not overlap with the second sidewall S2 (ie, the free/second end of the first flap) of the slit 130 in FIG. 3 in the horizontal direction. means that Note that the heights of the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 are defined by the thickness of the first membrane 110 .

3 , the first volume VL1 is connected to the first housing opening HO1 of the housing structure HSS, and the second volume VL2 is connected to the second housing opening HO2 of the housing structure HSS. do. Accordingly, the first volume VL1 is connected to the external ear canal of the user of the wearable sound device through the first housing opening HO1, and the second volume VL2 is connected to the wearable sound device through the second housing opening HO2. Connected. Note that the first chamber CB1 is a part of the second volume VL2.

Referring further to Figures 4 and 5, Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing a first membrane in a first mode according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 , when the first membrane 110 is operated, the first membrane 110 is deformed into a deformed shape 110Df. In the present invention, the acoustic transducer 100 may include a first mode and a second mode, wherein the first actuator 120 receives the first drive signal(s) in the first mode to operate in the Z direction (of the base BS). the first sidewall S1 (ie, the free/second end of the first flap) and the second sidewall S2 (ie, the free/second end of the second flap) of the slit 130 in the normal direction of the horizontal plane SH. ), and the first actuator 120 receives the second driving signal(s) in the second mode to generate a vent 130T formed between the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S1 of the slit 130 in the Z direction. A vent 130T is not created between the side walls S2.

As shown in FIG. 4 , in the first mode, the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130 may have different displacements, which is the difference between the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall. The overlap across the gap 130P of the slit 103 between (S2) is changed. When the difference in displacement in the Z direction is greater than the thickness of the first membrane 110, the first sidewall S1 no longer overlaps the second sidewall S2, and the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall ( It is said that an opening is formed between S2) and the vent 130T is open. Taking points C and D on both sides of the slit 130a in FIG. 1 as an example, when the first membrane 110 is operated in the first mode, the point C of the first sidewall S1 on the membrane portion 112a. is actuated according to a first drive signal (eg voltage) to have a first displacement Uz_a along direction Z, and point D on the second sidewall S2 on membrane portion 112b is actuated according to the first drive signal. and has a second displacement Uz_b along direction Z, the first displacement Uz_a at point C is significantly greater than the second displacement Uz_b at point D, so that the segment of the first sidewall S1 close to point C and the second displacement Uz_b close to point D The segments of the two sidewalls S2 do not overlap and the vent 130T is formed (or "opened"). The opening size U _ZO of the vent 130T is determined by the membrane displacement difference ΔUz between the first displacement Uz_a and the second displacement Uz_b and the thickness of the first membrane 110: U _ZO = ΔUz-T110, where ΔUz = | Uz_a-Uz_b |, T110 is the thickness of the first membrane 110, and T110 may actually be 5-7 μm, but is not limited thereto. If the membrane displacement difference ΔUz in the first mode is greater than the thickness T110 of the first membrane 110 (film structure FS), the vent 130T is said to be “temporarily open”. As the opening size U _ZO of the vent 130T increases, the vent 130T becomes wider.

When the vent 130T is temporarily opened, as shown in FIG. 4 , between the volumes (ie, the first volume VL1 and the second volume VL2) due to the pressure difference between both sides of the first membrane 110 Air starts to flow in and the pressure due to the occlusion effect is released (that is, the pressure difference between the ear canal and the surroundings of the wearable sound device can be released through the air flow flowing through the vent 130T), suppressing the occlusion effect. .

The reason for forming the vent 130T is as follows. Reference is made to point C and point D of the slit 130a shown in FIG. 1 . Point C is located on the first sidewall S1 of the membrane portion 112a, point D is located on the second sidewall S2 of the membrane portion 112b, and point D crosses the gap 130P to point C and Opposite. The displacement of membrane part 112a at point C is driven by actuation part 120a, and the displacement of membrane part 112b at point D is driven by actuation part 120b. The distance DC from point C to the anchor edge of membrane portion 112a is greater than the distance DD from point D to anchor edge of membrane portion 112b. The shorter the distance, the higher the stiffness, so the deformation at point D is less than the deformation at point C even when the same driving force is applied. Also, the arrow DC overlaps the area of the actuating part whereas the arrow DD does not. This means that the driving force applied by the actuating part 120a at point C is stronger than the driving force applied by the actuating part 120b at point D. Combining these elements, the displacement of membrane portion 112a at point C, where the driving force intensity is stronger and the stiffness is lower, will be greater than the displacement of membrane portion 112b at point D.

In the second mode, the membrane displacement difference is the thickness of the first membrane 110, i.e. ΔUz≤ΔT110, namely the sidewall at point C of the first sidewall S1 and at the point D of the second sidewall S2. The side walls may partially or completely overlap in the horizontal direction. For example, two membrane portions are shown in FIG. 3 associated with slits 130 (ie, a first flap and a second flap) in the second mode, and these two membrane portions (two flaps) are substantially different from each other. parallel to and substantially parallel to the horizontal surface SH of the base BS, but is not limited thereto. In another example, two membrane portions associated with slits 130 (eg, a first flap and a second flap) in the second mode are shown in FIG. 5 , these two membrane portions (two flaps) may not be parallel to the horizontal surface SH of the base BS, the free/second end of the first flap (first sidewall S1) being closer to the base BS than the fixed part of the first end of the first flap. , and the free/second end of the second flap (second sidewall S2) may be closer to the base BS than the fixed/first end of the second flap, but is not limited thereto, where ΔUz≤T110 . Thus, when slit 130 and its associated membrane portion are in the second mode, ΔUz≦T110, vent 130T is not open/created, and/or vent 130T is closed.

The width of the gap 130P of the slit 130 should be sufficiently small to be 1 μm to 2 μm in practice. Airflow through a narrow channel can be highly damped due to viscous forces/resistance along the walls of the airflow path, known within the field of fluid dynamics as the boundary layer effect. Therefore, the airflow through the gap 130P of the slit 130 in the second mode is the airflow through the vent 130T of the slit 130 (eg, the gap 130P of the slit 130) in the first mode. airflow through it) can be much smaller than The second mode may be insignificant or ten times lower than the air flow through the vent 130T of the slit 130 in the first mode. In other words, since the width of the gap 130P of the slit 130 is sufficiently small, the air flow/leakage through the gap 130P of the slit 130 in the second mode is smaller than the air flow through the vent 130T in the first mode. (e.g. less than 10%) small enough to be insignificant.

According to the foregoing, in the first mode and the second mode, the first side wall S1, which is the free/second end of the first flap, can perform the first up and down movement, and the second side wall S2 plays a role. can be done The free/second end of the second flap can perform a second up and down movement. In particular, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 , when the first sidewall S1 (free/second end of the first flap) performs the first vertical movement, the first sidewall S1 is the acoustic transducer ( 100) not in physical contact with other components within; When the second sidewall S2 (the free/second end of the second flap) performs the second up-and-down movement, the second sidewall S2 does not physically contact other components in the acoustic transducer 100.

6 and 7, FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing several examples of relative position pairs on different sides of a slit according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. is a schematic diagram illustrating the frequency response of multiple examples according to 6 shows the relative position of point C (or free/second end) on membrane part 112a (or first flap) and point D (or free/second end) on membrane part 112b (or second flap). Illustrates six examples of position pairs Ex1-Ex6, which correspond to six progressively higher actuator drive voltages (V1-V6), and are indicated on the horizontal axis in FIG. 6 . The vertical axis in Fig. 6 represents the displacement (Uz) in the direction Z of points C and D. Note that the height of the blocks representing points C and D shown in FIG. 6 corresponds to the thickness of the first membrane 110 . FIG. 7 illustrates a frequency response of the acoustic transducer 100 when the first membrane 110 is actuated by the driving voltages V1-V6 (eg Ex1-Ex6) shown in FIG. 6 . The numerical values shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are for illustrative purposes, and the actual applied voltage may be adjusted according to actual conditions.

4 and 6, in this case (first driving method), a point on the first side wall S1 (ie, the other end of the first flap) and a point on the second side wall S2 (ie, the first flap) 2 The other end of the flap) The slit 130 moves in the same direction, that is, as the voltage applied to the first actuator 120 increases and the voltage rises above the threshold voltage, such as voltage V5 or V6, the first sidewall (S1) and the second sidewall (S2) move upward in the positive direction Z, creating/opening the vent (130T); Conversely, as the voltage applied to the first actuator 120 decreases and the voltage decreases below the threshold voltage such as V1 to V3, the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 move downward in the positive direction Z. Move to close the vent (130T).

As shown in FIG. 6 , when voltage V1 (eg, 1V) is applied to the first actuator 120, point C is lower than point D; point C is substantially aligned with point D when voltage V2 (eg, 8V) is applied to first actuator 120; When threshold voltage V4 (eg, 22V) is applied to first actuator 120, point C is higher than point D by exactly the thickness of first membrane 110; And when the voltage V5-V6 is applied to the first actuator 120, the point C is higher than the point D than the thickness of the first membrane 110. Therefore, in FIG. 6, when the first actuator 120 receives a voltage higher than the threshold voltage V4, such as the voltage V5 to V6, the vent 130T will be generated and the vent 130T will open; Conversely, when the first actuator 120 receives a voltage lower than the threshold voltage V4 , such as voltages V1 to V3 , the vent 130T is not generated and the vent 130T is said to be closed.

In other words, membrane portion 112a at point C is partially below membrane portion 112b at point D when voltage V1 is applied to first actuator 120 . The membrane portion 112a at point C is substantially horizontally aligned with the membrane portion 112b at point D when voltage V2 is applied to the first actuator 120 . The membrane portion 112a at point C is partially over the membrane portion 112b at point D when voltage V3 is applied to the first actuator 120 . When the voltage V4 is applied to the first actuator 120, the lower edge of the membrane portion 112a at point C is substantially aligned with the upper edge of the membrane portion 112b at point D in the horizontal direction. When a voltage greater than the threshold voltage V4, such as voltage V5 or V6, is applied to the first actuator 120, the membrane portion 112b at point C is positioned completely above the membrane portion 112b in the Z direction from point D to vent ( 130T) is created and opened.

As shown in FIG. 6 , in this embodiment, voltage V5 or V6 is applied to the first actuator 120 in the first mode, and voltage V1, V2 or V3 is applied to the first actuator 120 in the second mode. is authorized In other words, the absolute value of the first driving signal applied to the first actuator 120 in the first mode may be greater than or equal to the threshold value, and the absolute value of the second driving signal applied to the first actuator 120 may be greater than or equal to the second mode may be less than a threshold value, where the threshold value is shown as voltage V4 (22V) in FIG. 2 but is not limited thereto.

In accordance with the foregoing, in the second mode, the membrane portion 112a may be partially below, partially above or substantially aligned with the membrane portion 112b. That is, the first actuator 120 receives the second driving signal in the second mode so that the first sidewall S1 corresponds to the second sidewall S2 in a horizontal direction parallel to the horizontal plane SH of the base BS (or overlap) (ie, the vent 130T is closed and/or not created). In this embodiment, the entire first sidewall S1 corresponds to the second sidewall S2 in the horizontal direction in the second mode.

Meanwhile, in the first mode, the first actuator 120 receives the first driving signal so that at least a portion of the first sidewall S1 does not correspond to or overlap the second sidewall S2 horizontally, so that the vent ( 130T) is formed by a non-overlapping region between the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2.

As shown in FIG. 7, since the width of the gap 130P of the slit 130 must be sufficiently small, the low frequency roll-off (LFRO) edge frequency of SPL in the second mode in the frequency response of the acoustic transducer 100 is low, and generally is less than 35 Hz. Conversely, when the vent 130T is open/existent in the first mode, air flows through the vent 130T with an airflow impedance inversely proportional to the opening size of the vent 130T, so that the frequency of the acoustic transducer 100 In response, the LFRO edge frequency of the first mode will be much higher than the LFRO edge frequency of the second mode. For example, in the first mode, the LFRO corner frequency may fall between 80 and 400 Hz depending on the opening size of the vent 130T, but is not limited thereto.

When an occlusion effect occurs in the first driving method of the acoustic transducer 100, a first driving signal is applied to the first actuator 120 to make the acoustic transducer 100 into a first mode, and to suppress the occlusion effect, a vent ( Since the vent 130T can be created open so that the blockage-induced pressure is released by the air flow through the blockage effect, the blockage effect is suppressed. For example, in this embodiment, the first driving signal may include a vent generation signal (eg, voltage V5 or V6) and a common signal (eg, common signal + vent generation signal), but is not limited thereto. don't When the blocking effect does not occur, the acoustic transducer 100 may be made into the second mode by applying a second driving signal to the first actuator 120 so that the vent 130T does not occur. For example, in this embodiment, the second driving signal may include a vent suppression signal (eg, voltages V1, V2, or V3) and a common signal (eg, a common signal + a vent suppression signal). Not limited.

A common signal can be designed based on the requirement(s). In some embodiments, the common signal may include a constant (DC) bias voltage, an input audio (AC) signal, or a combination thereof. For example, when the common signal includes an input audio signal, the common signal includes a signal corresponding to (related to) the value(s) of the input audio signal, so that the first membrane 110 vents ( 130T) may be formed in the first mode, or alternatively, the first membrane 110 may generate acoustic waves while restraining (closing) the vent 130T. In one embodiment, the common signal may include a constant via voltage to hold the first membrane 110 in a specific position. For example, a constant bias voltage applied to the first actuator 120 may cause the first membrane 110 (eg, the first flap and the second flap) to be substantially parallel to the horizontal plane SH of the base BS. can

In the embodiments and examples shown in FIGS. 4 to 7 , the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130 move in the same direction to create/open the vent 130T. belong to the method The second driving method for generating the vent 130T may include moving the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 in different directions, and the third driving method for generating the vent 130T may include moving the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 in different directions. It may include only one of the side walls such as the first side wall. The sidewall S1 moves while the other sidewalls, such as the second sidewall S2, are stationary.

Referring to FIG. 8 , FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a first membrane in a first mode according to another embodiment of the present invention. 8 shows that the first membrane 110 of the acoustic transducer 100 is operated in the first mode according to the second driving method. As shown in FIG. 8 , for one slit 130, a first flap (one membrane portion including the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130) can be actuated to move in a first direction. and the second flap (one membrane portion including the second sidewall S2 of the slit) may be operated to move in a second direction opposite to the first direction so that the vent 130T is formed. That is, the first vertical movement of the first sidewall S1 (free/second end of the first flap) is opposite to the second vertical movement of the second sidewall S2 (free/second end of the second flap). . For example, the first direction and the second direction can be substantially parallel to direction Z and can transition from the second mode as shown in FIG. 3 to the first mode as shown in FIG. 8, and The free/second end of one flap (first side wall S1) (first side wall S1) free/second end (second side wall S2) can move downward. Conversely, in the transition from the first mode as shown in FIG. 8 back to the second mode as shown in FIG. 3 , the free/second end of the first flap (first sidewall S1 ) (first sidewall ( S1)) can move down and the free/second end of the second flap (second side wall S2) can move up. In the transition discussed above, the first sidewall S1 of the first flap and the second sidewall S2 of the second flap move in opposite directions.

Also, the free/second end of the first flap (first sidewall S1) can be actuated to have a first displacement Uz_a in the first direction, and the free/second end of the second flap (second sidewall ( S2)) can be actuated with a second displacement Uz_b in a second direction. In one embodiment, the first displacement of the first sidewall S1 and the second displacement of the second sidewall S2 may have substantially the same distance but opposite directions.

In addition, the first displacement of the first sidewall S1 and the second displacement of the second sidewall S2 may be temporarily symmetrical, that is, the movement of the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 may have a length Essentially the same, but for a period of time the direction is reversed. When the motions of the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of FIG. 8 are temporarily symmetrical, with respect to one slit 130, a first flap (the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130) A first airflow is generated because the membrane portion comprising one membrane) is actuated to move in a first direction, and the direction of the first airflow is related to the first direction, and the second flap (the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130) ) is actuated to move in a second direction opposite to the first direction, a second airflow occurs and the second airflow is relative to the second direction. Since the first airflow and the second airflow may be associated with opposite directions, respectively, the first flap (one membrane portion including the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130) and the second flap (of the slit 130) When the membrane portion including the second sidewall S2 is simultaneously operated to open and close the vent 130T, at least a portion of the first airflow and at least a portion of the second airflow may offset each other.

In some embodiments, when the first flap and the second flap are simultaneously operated to open and close the vent 130T, the first airflow and the second airflow may substantially cancel each other (eg, the first airflow is directed in the first direction). The first displacement and the second displacement in the second direction may have the same distance but opposite directions). That is, the net air flow generated by opening and closing the vent 130T including the first air flow and the second air flow is substantially zero. As a result, since the net airflow during opening and/or closing operation of vent 130T is substantially zero, operation of vent 130T does not cause perceptible acoustic disturbance to a user of acoustic transducer 100, and opening and/or the closing operation of the vent 130T may be said to be “concealed”.

[0095]

In the embodiments associated with FIGS. 1 , 2 , 4 , 6 and 7 , one drive signal, referred to herein as the first drive method, is applied to the first actuator 120 . In the second driving method, like the driving signal in the embodiment of FIG. 8 , the driving signal applied to the operating portion of the first actuator 120 on the first flap (the portion including the first sidewall S1) is applied to the second flap It may be different from the driving signal applied to the operating part of the first actuator 120 (the portion including the second sidewall S2). In detail, the first actuator 120 disposed on the first flap (membrane portion including the first sidewall S1) receives the first signal and acts on the second flap (membrane portion including the second sidewall S2). The disposed first actuator 120 will receive the second signal. Thus, the first flap moves according to the first signal and the second flap moves according to the second signal.

10V와 같이 토글할수 있고, 감소 전압은 0V와 음의 전압 사이에서 토글할 수 있는데, 예를 들어 0V

-10V와 같이 토글할 수 있지만 이에 제한되지는 않는다. 공통 신호는 일정한 바이어스 전압, 입력 오디오 신호 또는 이들의 조합을 포함할 수 있으나 이에 제한되지 않는다.The first signal and the second signal may include component signals designed to cause the first flap (membrane portion including the first sidewall S1) and the second flap (membrane portion including the second sidewall S2) to move in opposite directions, respectively. can For example, the first signal can include a common signal and an increasing voltage, the second signal can include the same common signal and a decreasing voltage, and the increasing voltage can toggle between 0V and a positive voltage; For example 0V

It can toggle like 10V, the reduced voltage can toggle between 0V and negative voltage, for example 0V

It can be toggled such as -10V, but is not limited to this. The common signal may include, but is not limited to, a constant bias voltage, an input audio signal, or a combination thereof.

For example, in the first mode of acoustic transducer 100 of FIG. 1 , the increasing voltage may have a positive voltage, eg 10V, making the first signal 10V higher than the common signal, and the decreasing voltage may be negative. may have a voltage of, for example, -10V to make the second signal 10V lower than the common signal, and the vent 130T includes the first membrane portion (including the first sidewall S1) and the second membrane portion (the second membrane portion). will open/form when the delta displacement of the sidewall (including S2) is greater than the thickness of the first membrane 110. Conversely, in the second mode of the acoustic transducer 100, both the increasing voltage of the first signal and the decreasing voltage of the second signal may be approximately 0V, resulting in the same drive for actuators on both parts of the first membrane 110. A signal is applied and passed to both membrane parts (one comprising the first sidewall S1 and the other comprising the second sidewall S2) to produce approximately equal displacements, as a result of which the vent 130T is not formed/opened or closed. It will be.

Accordingly, in a specific situation, the increased voltage and the increased voltage may be substantially the same magnitude, but are not limited thereto. In certain situations, such as the first mode where vent 130T is open, the first signal may be higher than the second signal by, but is not limited to, a voltage level sufficient to cause the delta displacement to be greater than the thickness of the membrane; In a specific situation, such as the second mode in which vent 130T is closed, both the increasing voltage and decreasing voltage may be at or close to 0V, but are not limited thereto.

As described above, the slit 130 of the present invention can be driven by the first driving method or the second driving method serving as a dynamic front vent of the acoustic transducer 100, where the housing structure (HSS) The first volume VL1 and the second volume VL2 of ) are connected when the dynamic front vent is opened (ie, the vent 130T of the slit 130 is opened or formed), and the housing structure HSS is connected. The first volume VL1 and the second volume VL2 are separated from each other when the dynamic front vent is closed (ie, the vent 130T of the slit 130 is closed or not formed). The wider the vent 130T, the larger the dynamic front vent. Accordingly, the size of the front vent can be changed by the drive signal(s) according to the requirement(s).

Moreover, the acoustic transducer 100 of the present invention can have better waterproofing and better dustproofing due to the dynamic front vent.

In the present invention, the acoustic transducer 100 may use any suitable driver. For example, the acoustic transducer 100 may use a compact driver (eg, a typical 115 dB driver), so the acoustic transducer 100 of the present invention may be suitable for a compact device.

Referring to FIG. 9 , FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a wearable sound device having a sound transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 9 , the wearable sound device further includes a sensing device 150 electrically connected to an actuator (eg, a first actuator 120) of the acoustic transducer 100 and a driving circuit 160 can do.

The sensing device 150 may be configured to sense a necessary element outside the wearable sound device and generate a sensing result. For example, the sensing device 150 may detect a necessary element using an infrared (IR) sensing method, an optical sensing method, an ultrasonic sensing method, a capacitive sensing method, or other suitable sensing method, but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, whether the vent 130T is formed is determined according to a sensing result. The vent 130T is opened (or formed) when the detection amount shown in the detection result exceeds a certain threshold in the first polarity, and is closed (or not formed) when the detection amount exceeds a certain threshold in the second polarity. The second polarity is opposite to the first polarity. For example, the first polarity may be from low to high, the second polarity may be from high to low, and when the sensing amount is changed from a value lower than a specific threshold value to a value higher than a specific threshold value, the vent (130T) ) may be opened, and the vent 130T is closed when the sensing amount changes from more than a certain threshold to less than a certain threshold, but is not limited thereto.

Moreover, in some embodiments, the degree of opening of vent 130T may be monotonically related to the amount of detection indicated by the detection result. That is, the degree of opening of the vent 130T increases or decreases as the sensing amount increases or decreases.

In some embodiments, sensing device 150 may optionally include a motion sensor configured to detect motion of the user's body and/or motion of the wearable sound device. For example, the sensing device 150 may detect body movements that cause an occlusion effect, such as walking, jogging, talking, eating, and the like. In some embodiments, the sensing amount indicated by the sensing result indicates the motion of the user's body and/or the motion of the wearable sound device, and the degree of opening of the vent 130T is correlated with the sensed distance. For example, the degree of opening of the vent 130T increases as the motion increases.

In some embodiments, sensing device 150 may optionally include a proximity sensor configured to sense a distance between an object and the proximity sensor. In some embodiments, the sensing amount indicated by the sensing result indicates the distance between the object and the proximity sensor, and the degree of opening of the vent 130T is correlated with the detected movement. For example, the vent 130T is opened (or formed) when this distance is smaller than a predetermined distance, and the degree of opening of the vent 130T increases as the distance decreases. For example, if the user wants to open (or form) vent 130T, the user can use any suitable object (eg, hand) to approach the wearable sound device so that the proximity sensor detects this object. is sensed to generate a sensing result accordingly, thereby opening/forming the vent 130T.

In addition, the proximity sensor may further have a function of detecting that the user taps or touches the wearable sound device having the acoustic transducer 100 (predictably), since such movement may also cause an occlusion effect. .

In some embodiments, the sensing device 150 may optionally include a force sensor configured to sense a force applied to the force sensor of the wearable sound device, and the detected amount indicated by the sensing result is the force applied to the wearable sound device. , and the degree of opening of the vent 130T is correlated with the sensed force.

In some embodiments, the sensing device 150 may optionally include a light sensor configured to sense ambient light of the wearable sound device, and the detected amount indicated by the sensing result indicates the luminance of the ambient light sensed by the light sensor. , the degree of opening of the vent 130T correlates with the luminance of the sensed ambient light.

The drive circuit 160 is configured to generate drive signal(s) applied to an actuator (eg, first actuator 120) to actuate the first membrane 110, where the drive signal(s) is It may be based on the sensing result of the sensing device 150 and the value of the input audio signal. In FIG. 9 , the driving circuit 160 may be an integrated circuit, but is not limited thereto.

For example, in the first driving method, the first driving signal and the second driving signal may be generated by the driving circuit 160, and the vent generating signal of the first driving signal and the vent suppressing signal of the second driving signal may be It may be generated according to the detection result, but is not limited thereto.

For example, in the second driving method, the first signal and the second signal may be generated by the driving circuit 160, and the increased voltage of the first signal and the decreased voltage of the second signal may be generated according to the sensing result. may, but is not limited thereto.

Similarly, since the degree of opening of the vent 130T can be monotonically related to the sensing amount indicated by the sensing result, the increasing voltage and/or decreasing voltage of the second driving method (or the vent generating signal in the first driving method) ) may have a monotonic relationship with the amount of detection indicated by the detection result.

Similarly, when the sensing device 150 includes a motion sensor, the magnitude of the increasing voltage and/or the magnitude of the decreasing voltage in the second driving method (or the vent generation signal of the first driving method) increases as the motion increases. (or decrease), but is not limited thereto. Similarly, when the sensing device 150 includes a proximity sensor, the magnitude of the increased voltage and/or the magnitude of the decreased voltage in the second driving method (or the vent generation signal in the first driving method) is such that the distance is less than or equal to the threshold value. It may increase (or decrease) as it decreases or decreases, but is not limited thereto. Similarly, when the sensing device 150 includes a force sensor, the magnitude of the increasing voltage and/or the magnitude of the decreasing voltage in the second driving method (or the vent generating signal in the first driving method) increases as the force increases. (or reduced), but is not limited thereto. Similarly, when the sensing device 150 includes an optical sensor, the magnitude of the increasing voltage and/or the magnitude of the decreasing voltage in the second driving method (or the vent generation signal of the first driving method) increases as the luminance of the ambient light decreases. It may increase (or decrease), but is not limited thereto.

Additionally, drive circuit 160 may include any suitable components. For example, the driving circuit 160 includes an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) 162, a digital signal processor (DSP) unit 164, and a digital-to-analog converter (digital-to-digital converter). -analog, DAC) 166, any other suitable component (eg, a microphone to detect SPL of ambient sound or SPL of occlusion noise), or a combination thereof.

In the present embodiment, the driving circuit 160 applies a driving signal(s) to the first actuator 120 in response to the driving circuit 160 based on the sensing result generated by the sensing device, so that the sound transducer 100 ) into the first mode or the second mode. In the first mode, the acoustic transducer 100 forms a vent 130T to suppress the blockage effect. Also, the first mode acoustic transducer 100 may selectively generate acoustic waves. In the second mode, the acoustic transducer 100 generates acoustic waves.

Optionally, the driving circuit 160 may further include a frequency response equalizer for adjusting the driving signal of the sound transducer 100 in a specific frequency range. As shown in FIG. 7 , four different LFRO corner frequencies are shown in the frequency response of acoustic transducer 100 corresponding to four different vent 130T conditions. In one embodiment, the signal processing unit including the frequency response equalizer may be configured to compensate for different LFRO corner frequencies of the frequency response of the acoustic transducer 100 due to differences in the degree of opening of the vent 130T. For example, the frequency response equalizer has a LFRO frequency response of example Ex5 (or Ex6) when driving voltage V5 (or V6) is applied to first actuator 120 and vent 130T is opened as shown in FIG. It can be enabled to compensate the curve. In other words, the frequency response equalizer may be enabled in a first mode (the frequency response equalizer is enabled when the vent 130T is open), and the frequency response equalizer may be disabled in a second mode (the frequency response equalizer is enabled). is disabled when vent 130T is closed). Also, the amount of equalization generated by the frequency response equalizer may be adaptive, dynamically changing according to the opening size of the vent 130T. As a result, the frequency response equalizer can compensate for the changing LFRO of the low frequency response of the acoustic transducer 100 as the vent 130T is opened (that is, the frequency response equalizer reduces the low frequency of the acoustic transducer 100 in the first mode). response degradation), a change in the frequency response of the acoustic transducer 100 can be equalized, minimizing disturbance of the sound generating characteristics of the transducer 100 and optimizing the listener's audio listening experience.

The acoustic transducer of the present invention is not limited by the above embodiment. Another embodiment of the present invention is described below. For ease of comparison, identical components are marked with the symbols shown below. The following description relates to the difference between each embodiment, and repeated parts are not described redundantly.

Referring to FIGS. 10 to 12, FIGS. 10 to 12 are schematic cross-sectional views showing another type of acoustic transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10 shows a second mode of the acoustic transducer 100'. show 11 and 12 show a first mode of the acoustic transducer 100'. 10 to 12, the difference between the acoustic transducer 100' and the acoustic transducer 100 is that the first membrane 110 of the acoustic transducer 100' of this embodiment is the first membrane of the slit 130. However, the first membrane 110 does not include the second side wall S2 of the slit 130 . That is, the slit 130 is a part of the boundary of the first membrane 110 (ie, the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130 may be one of the outer edges 110e of the first membrane 110). ). 10 to 12 , the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130 may be fixed/non-fixed during operation of the sound transducer 100'. For example, the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130 may belong to the anchor structure 140, but is not limited thereto. Due to the design of the slit 130 shown in FIGS. 10 to 12 , the anchor structure 140 may not be connected to a portion of the outer edge 110e of the first membrane 110, but is not limited thereto.

In another aspect, as shown in FIGS. 10-12 , the first membrane 110 includes only a first flap and no second flap, wherein the first end of the first flap is an anchor structure. 140, the second/free end of the first flap performs a first up and down movement (i.e., the second end of the first flap can move up and down) to form a vent 130T ( Vent 130T is shown in Figures 11 and 12), the first sidewall S1 of slit 130 belongs to the second/free end of the first flap.

In this design, since the second sidewall S2 is in a fixed/unfixed state during the operation of the acoustic transducer 100', the vent 130T is formed by increasing the driving signal applied to the first actuator 120, As in the case of FIG. 11 , the side wall S1 may be moved upward in the Z direction. For example, since the voltage across the electrodes of the first actuator 120 is 30V, the first sidewall S1 may move upward in the Z direction, but is not limited thereto. Alternatively, in the case of FIG. 12 , the first membrane 110 may have a negative initial displacement, that is, when the voltage across the electrode of the first actuator 120 is 0V, the first sidewall S1 in the Z direction The displacement may be -18 μm. For example, assuming that the membrane thickness is 5 μm, the height of the first sidewall S1 is 5 μm, and when 0 V is applied to the first actuator 120, the state of the vent 130T means “open” and the vent ( 130T) is equal to 18-5=13μm. As such, in this embodiment, the vent 130T is placed in the second mode by applying a positive driving signal (eg, 16V) to the first actuator 120, and as shown in FIG. 10, the first membrane 110 ) may be substantially parallel to the horizontal plane SH; Vent 130T can be put into the first mode by applying 0V to first actuator 120 .

Referring to FIG. 13, FIG. 13 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an acoustic transducer according to a second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 13, the difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is that the acoustic transducer 200 of this embodiment further includes a second membrane 210, a second actuator 220 and an anchor structure 240, , that they are disposed in the horizontal plane SH of the base BS, where the second membrane 210 is fixed by the anchor structure 240 and the second actuator 220 operates the second membrane 210. The second chamber CB2 is present between the base BS and the second membrane 210. In this embodiment, the film structure FS includes, but is not limited to, the first membrane 110 and the second membrane 210 . In this embodiment, the acoustic transducer 200 may optionally include a chip disposed on the horizontal plane SH of the base BS, the chip having a film structure FS (including the first membrane 110 and the second membrane 210) , the first actuator 120, the second actuator 220, and the anchor structures 140 and 240 (ie, these structures are integrated into one chip), but are not limited thereto.

Functions provided by the first membrane 110 and the first actuator 120 are different from those provided by the second membrane 210 and the second actuator 220 . In this embodiment, the first membrane 110 and the first actuator 120 may be configured as follows. To suppress the occlusion effect, the second membrane 210 and the second actuator 220 may be configured to perform acoustic transduction. That is, the first membrane 110 and the first actuator 120 do not perform acoustic conversion.

In detail, in the first mode, the first actuator 120 moves between the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130 in the Z direction (normal direction of the horizontal plane SH of the base BS). It is possible to create a vent (130T) formed in. In the second mode, the first actuator 120 may not create the vent 130T between the first sidewall S1 and the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130 in the Z direction. Whether the acoustic transducer 200 is in the first mode or the second mode, the second actuator 220 may receive an acoustic drive signal corresponding to (related to) the value(s) of the input audio signal to generate acoustic waves. have. That is, the driving signal(s) applied to the first actuator 120 may not correspond to (relate to) the value(s) of the input audio signal. For example, in the first drive method, the first drive signal may include a vent generation signal (eg, 30V in the discussion related to FIG. 11 or 0V in the discussion related to FIG. 12 ), and the second drive signal may be may include, but is not limited to, a vent suppression signal (eg, 16V in the discussion related to FIG. 10 ).

The second membrane 210, the second actuator 220 and the anchor structure 240 can be designed according to the requirement(s), wherein the second membrane 210, the second actuator 220 and the anchor structure ( 240) should be suitable for generating acoustic waves. For example, in this embodiment, a plan view of the second membrane 210, second actuator 220 and anchor structure 240 is shown in FIG. It may be similar to (120) and anchor structure (140), but is not limited thereto. The second membrane 210 may have at least one slit 230 so that displacement of the second membrane 210 may be increased and/or during operation of the acoustic transducer 200 the second membrane 210 may It may be elastically deformed, but is not limited thereto.

Since the material and type of the second membrane 210 may refer to the first membrane 110 described in the first embodiment, redundant description will be omitted. Since the material and type of the second actuator 220 may refer to the first actuator 120 described in the first embodiment, redundant description will be omitted. Since the material of the anchor structure 240 may refer to the anchor structure 140 described in the first embodiment, redundant description is omitted.

Note that the second membrane 210 , the slit(s) 230 , the second actuator 220 and the anchor structure 240 may be considered a second unit U2 .

The first unit U1 can be designed according to the requirement(s), where the design of the first membrane 110, the first actuator 120 and the slit(s) 130 are designed to suppress the occlusion effect. need to fit In this embodiment, the first membrane 110 of the first unit U1 of this embodiment includes the first sidewall S1 of the slit 130 but does not include the second sidewall S2 of the slit 130. (ie, the first membrane 110 does not include the first flap and the second flap). For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the first unit U1 may be similar to the acoustic transducer 100' shown in FIG. 10, but is not limited thereto.

Also, the first chamber CB1 may be connected to the second chamber CB2. In this embodiment, the base BS may include a plurality of back vents BVT1 and BVT2, and the first chamber CB1 is disposed outside the rear of the acoustic transducer 200 through the back vents BVT1 (that is, the base BS The second chamber CB2 is connected to the rear exterior of the sound transducer 200 (ie, the rear space of the base BS) through the back vent BVT2, and the first chamber CB1 may be connected to the second chamber CB2 through the back vent BVT1, the rear exterior of the acoustic transducer 200 (that is, a part of the second volume VL2) and the back vent BVT2, but is not limited thereto.

In another embodiment, an air channel may exist between the first membrane 110 and the base BS so that the first chamber CB1 may be connected to the second chamber CB2 through the air channel. For example, since the air channel may be a hole HL penetrating both sides of the anchor structure 140/240, the first chamber CB1 may be connected to the second chamber CB2 through the hole HL. but is not limited thereto.

During fabrication, as will be detailed later in this disclosure, the first membrane 110 and the second membrane 210 may both be fabricated during one single planar thin film fabrication sequence; Both the first actuator 120 and the second actuator 220 can be fabricated during another single planar film fabrication sequence; The first chamber CB1 , the second chamber CB2 and the anchor structures 140 , 240 , 140 / 240 may be formed during one single bulk silicon etching sequence.

Referring to FIG. 14, FIG. 14 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an acoustic transducer according to a second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 15, compared to the acoustic transducer 200 of FIG. 13, the first membrane 110 of the first unit U1 of the acoustic transducer 200' has a first sidewall of the slit 130 ( S1) and a second sidewall S2 (ie, the first membrane 110 includes a first flap and a second flap). For example, as shown in FIG. 14 , the first unit U1 may be similar to the acoustic transducer 100 shown in FIG. 1 , but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, as shown for example in FIG. 14 , the design of the first unit U1 (first membrane 110 , first actuator 120 and slit 130 ) is, from a particular point of view, a second It may have the same cross section as the design of the unit U2 (the second membrane 210, the second actuator 220, and the slit 230).

Referring to Fig. 15, Fig. 15 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Note that the design of the membrane, actuator, slit(s) and anchor structure of the acoustic transducer 300 of the third embodiment can be applied to the first unit U1 and/or the second unit U2.

As shown in FIG. 15 , the difference between the first embodiment and the present embodiment is the arrangement of the slit 130 and the first actuator 120 . In this embodiment, the slit 130 may be a combination of a straight slit and a curved slit. 15, the slit 130 of this embodiment includes a first part e1, a second part e2 connected to the first part e1, and a third part e3 connected to the second part e2. The first part e1 , the second part e2 , and the third part e3 are sequentially arranged from the outer edge 110e to the inside of the first membrane 110 . In the slit 130 , the first part e1 and the second part e2 may be straight slits extending in different directions, and the third part e3 may be a curved slit, but is not limited thereto. The third portion e3 may have a hooked curved end of the slit 130 , where the hooked curved end surrounds the coupling plate 114 of the first membrane 110 . The hooked curved end means that the curvature(s) at the curved end or third part e3 is greater than the curvature(s) in the first part e1 or the second part e2 from a plan view perspective. In addition, the hook-shaped slit 130 extends toward the center of the first membrane 110 or toward the coupling plate 114 inside the first membrane 110 . The slit 130 may engrave a fillet in the first membrane 110 .

The curved end of the third portion e3 may be configured to minimize stress concentration near the end of the slit 130 .

Referring to FIG. 16, FIG. 16 is a schematic plan view illustrating an acoustic transducer according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. Note that the design of the membrane, actuator, slit(s) and anchor structure of the acoustic transducer 400 of the fourth embodiment can be applied to the first unit U1 and/or the second unit U2.

As shown in FIG. 16, the difference between the third embodiment and the present embodiment is the arrangement of the slits 130. In this embodiment, some slits 130 may be shorter, and each short slit 130_S is between two long slits 130_L, but is not limited thereto. In FIG. 16 , the short slit 130_S may not be connected to the outer edge 110e of the first membrane 110, but is not limited thereto.

The short slit 130_S may be a combination of a straight slit and a curved slit, and a pattern of the short slit 130_S may be similar to that of the long slit 130_L. Also, in FIG. 16 , the short slit 130_S may not be located in the area where the first actuator 120 is disposed, but is not limited thereto.

Referring to Fig. 17, Fig. 17 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. Note that the design of the membrane, actuator, slit(s) and anchor structure of the acoustic transducer 500 of the fifth embodiment can be applied to the first unit U1 and/or the second unit U2.

As shown in FIG. 17 , the difference between the first embodiment and the present embodiment is the arrangement of the slit 130 and the first actuator 120 . In this embodiment, the long slits 130_L may be a combination of straight slits (eg, three straight slits form a Y shape), but is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, the short slit 130_S may be between two long slits 130_L, and the short slit 130_S may not be connected to the outer edge 110e of the first membrane 110, but is limited thereto. It doesn't work. In FIG. 17 , the short slit 130_S is a straight slit, and the short slit 130_S may be parallel to a part of the long slit 130_L, but is not limited thereto.

Referring to FIG. 18, FIG. 18 is a schematic plan view illustrating an acoustic transducer according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. Note that the design of the membrane, actuator, slit(s) and anchor structure of the acoustic transducer 600 of the sixth embodiment can be applied to the first unit U1 and/or the second unit U2.

As shown in FIG. 18 , the difference between the first embodiment and the present embodiment is the arrangement of the slit 130 and the first actuator 120 . In this embodiment, slit 130 may be a combination of a straight slit and a curved slit (e.g., two straight slits and a combined slit form one curved slit and one straight slit; The slit forms a Y shape), but is not limited thereto.

Referring to the upper portion of FIG. 18, substantially representing a quarter of the first membrane 110, the straight slits of one slit 130 and the combined slits of the other slit 130 are parallel to each other, It overlaps along the Y direction, but is not limited thereto.

Referring to FIGS. 19 and 20 , FIG. 19 is a schematic plan view of a sound transducer according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 20 is an enlarged view of the central portion of FIG. 19 . Note that the design of the membrane, actuator, slit(s) and anchor structure of the acoustic transducer 700 of the seventh embodiment can be applied to the first unit U1 and/or the second unit U2.

As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20 , the difference between the first embodiment and the present embodiment is the arrangement of the slit 130 and the first actuator 120 . In this embodiment, the long slit 130_L may be a combination of straight slits (eg, three straight slits), but is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, the short slit 130_S not connected to the outer edge 110e of the first membrane 110 may be a straight slit, and the short slit 130_S may be parallel to a part of the long slit 130_L. but not limited thereto.

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 19 and 20 , the ratio between the area of the coupling plate 114 and the area of the first membrane 110 may be very small, but is not limited thereto.

Referring to FIG. 21, FIG. 21 is a schematic plan view illustrating an acoustic transducer according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention. Note that the design of the membrane, actuator, slit(s) and anchor structure of the acoustic transducer 800 of the eighth embodiment can be applied to the first unit U1 and/or the second unit U2.

As shown in FIG. 21 , the difference between the first embodiment and the present embodiment is the arrangement of the slit 130 and the first actuator 120 . In this embodiment, the outer slit 130_T may be a combination of straight slits forming a Y shape, but is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, the inner slit 130_N not connected to the outer edge 110e of the first membrane 110 may be a combination of straight slits forming a W shape. In FIG. 21 , a portion of the inner slit 130_N is parallel to a portion of the outer slit 130_T, but is not limited thereto.

Moreover, in FIG. 21 , the ratio of the area of the coupling plate 114 to the area of the first membrane 110 may be very small, but is not limited thereto.

Note that the arrangement of the slit(s) 130 described in the above embodiment is an example. Any suitable arrangement of slit(s) 130 may be used in the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 22, FIG. 22 is a schematic plan view illustrating an acoustic transducer according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 22 , acoustic transducer 900 includes a plurality of units 902 (ie, first unit(s) U1, second unit(s) U2 or combinations thereof) to include a plurality of membranes. can include In FIG. 22 , acoustic transducer 900 includes but is not limited to four units 902 to form a 2×2 array. In the present invention, the acoustic transducer 900 may include one single chip including all the units 902, or the acoustic transducer 900 may include a plurality of chips to achieve a plurality of units 902 (the chips are the same or may be different).

It is noted that FIG. 22 is for illustrative purposes illustrating the concept of an acoustic transducer 900 comprising multiple sound generating units 902 . The configuration of each membrane is not limited and the membranes may be the same or different.

Due to the plurality of units 902 included in the acoustic transducer 900, acoustic waves may be generated by these units 902 in any suitable manner. In some embodiments, unit 902 may simultaneously generate acoustic waves such that the SPL of the acoustic waves may be greater, but is not limited thereto.

PRG이다. 즉, 하나의 그룹(즉, 하나 또는 일부 단위)에 의해 생성된 공기 펄스 배열의 펄스 레이트는 그룹의 수가 1보다 큰 경우 모든 그룹(즉, 모든 유닛(902))에 의해 생성된 전체 공기 펄스의 전체 펄스 레이트보다 작다.In some embodiments, unit 902 may generate acoustic waves in a temporally interleaved manner. Regarding the temporal interleave method, the sound generating unit 902 is divided into a plurality of groups to generate air pulses, the air pulses generated by different groups are temporally interleaved, and these air pulses are combined to form acoustic waves. It becomes the entire air pulse to reproduce. If unit 902 is divided into M groups and the array of air pulses generated by each group has a pulse rate PRG, then the total pulse rate of all air pulses is M

It is PRG. That is, the pulse rate of an air pulse array generated by one group (i.e., one or some units) is equal to the pulse rate of the total air pulses generated by all groups (i.e., all units 902) if the number of groups is greater than one. less than the full pulse rate.

Referring to Fig. 23, Fig. 23 is a schematic diagram of a plan view showing an acoustic transducer according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 23, the difference between the ninth embodiment and this embodiment is that the units 902 of the acoustic transducer 1000 of this embodiment may have different sizes, where the small unit 902 is a high frequency It may be a sound unit (tweeter) 1002 , and a larger unit 902 may be a low frequency sound unit (woofer) 1004 . The design of the high-frequency sound unit 1002 may be the above-mentioned first unit U1, the above-mentioned second unit U2, or a combination thereof and a low-frequency sound design. The unit 1004 may be the aforementioned first unit U1, the aforementioned second unit U2, or a combination thereof.

In the operation of the acoustic transducer 1000, there is a high-frequency sound unit 1002 composed of high-frequency sound conversion and a low-frequency sound unit 1004 composed of low-frequency sound conversion, but is not limited thereto. Details of the high-frequency sound unit 1002 and the low-frequency sound unit 1004 may be found in Applicant's filed US Application Serial No. 17/153,849, which is not described herein for brevity.

In the following, the details of the manufacturing method of the acoustic transducer will be explained more exemplarily. The manufacturing method is not limited by the following examples provided by way of example, and the manufacturing method may manufacture an acoustic transducer comprising the first unit(s) U1 and/or the second unit(s) U2. Note the In the following manufacturing method, the actuator (eg, the first actuator 120 and/or the second actuator 220) of the acoustic transducer may be, for example, a piezoelectric actuator, but is not limited thereto. Any suitable type of actuator may be used for the acoustic transducer.

In the fabrication method below, the formation process may include atomic layer deposition (ALD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and other suitable process(s) or combinations thereof. The patterning process may include such as photolithography, etching processes, any other suitable process(es), or combinations thereof.

Referring to FIGS. 24 to 30 , FIGS. 24 to 30 are schematic diagrams showing structures in various stages of a method for manufacturing a sound transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the acoustic transducer may be manufactured using at least one semiconductor process, but is not limited thereto. As shown in FIG. 24 , a wafer WF is provided, wherein the wafer WF includes a first layer W1, an electrical insulation layer W3 and a second layer W2, wherein the insulation layer ( W3) is formed between the first layer W1 and the second layer W2.

The first layer W1 , the insulating layer W3 , and the second layer W2 may individually include any suitable material such that the wafer WF may be of any suitable type. For example, the first layer W1 and the second layer W2 may individually be made of silicon (eg monocrystalline silicon or polycrystalline silicon), silicon carbide, germanium, gallium nitride, gallium arsenide, stainless steel, and other suitable materials. High stiffness materials or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, the first layer W1 may include single crystal silicon such that the wafer WF becomes a silicon on insulator (SOI) wafer WF, but is not limited thereto. In some embodiments, the first layer W1 may include polycrystalline silicon such that the wafer WF becomes a polysilicon on insulator (POI), but is not limited thereto. For example, the insulating layer W3 may include an oxide such as silicon oxide (eg, silicon dioxide), but is not limited thereto.

The thicknesses of the first layer (W1), the insulating layer (W3) and the second layer (W2) may be individually adjusted according to the requirement(s). For example, the thickness of the first layer W1 may be 5 μm, and the thickness of the second layer W2 may be 350 μm, but is not limited thereto.

24 , the compensation oxide film CPS may be selectively formed on a first surface of the wafer WF, and the first surface is an upper surface W1a of the first layer W1 opposite to the second layer W2. ), the first layer W1 is between the compensation oxide layer CPS and the second layer W2. The material of the oxide included in the compensation oxide layer (CPS) and the thickness of the compensation oxide layer (CPS) can be designed according to the requirement(s).

In FIG. 24 , a first conductive layer CT1 and an actuating material (AM) are sequentially formed on one side (on the first layer W1 ) of the wafer WF, so that the first conductive layer CT1 is It may be located between the working material AM and the first layer W1 (eg, and/or between the working material AM and the compensating oxide layer CPS). In some embodiments, the first conductive layer CT1 is in contact with the working material AM.

The first conductive layer CT1 may include any suitable conductive material, and the working material AM may include any suitable material. In one embodiment, the first conductive layer CT1 may include a metal such as platinum, and the operating material AM may include a piezoelectric material, but is not limited thereto. For example, the piezoelectric material may include, but is not limited to, a lead-zirconate-titanate (PZT) material. Also, the thicknesses of the first conductive layer CT1 and the working material AM may be individually adjusted according to the requirement(s).

As shown in FIG. 25 , the working material AM, the first conductive layer CT1 and the compensating oxide layer CPS may be patterned. In some embodiments, the working material AM, the first conductive layer CT1 and the compensation oxide layer CPS may be sequentially patterned.

As shown in FIG. 26 , an isolation insulating layer SIL may be formed and patterned on the working material AM. The thickness of the isolation insulating layer (SIL) and the material of the isolation insulating layer (SIL) can be designed according to the requirement(s). For example, the material of the isolation insulating layer (SIL) may be oxide, but is not limited thereto.

As shown in FIG. 27 , after forming the second conductive layer CT2 on the working material AM and the isolation insulating layer SIL, the second conductive layer CT2 may be patterned. The thickness of the second conductive layer CT2 and the material of the second conductive layer CT2 may be designed according to requirements. For example, the second conductive layer CT2 may include metal (eg, aurum), but is not limited thereto.

The patterned first conductive layer CT1 functions as a first electrode EL1 for an actuator, the patterned second conductive layer CT2 functions as a second electrode EL2 for an actuator, and the actuator material AM ), the first electrode EL1 and the second electrode EL2 function. It may be a component of an actuator (eg, first actuator 120 and/or second actuator 220) of an acoustic transducer to make the actuator a piezoelectric actuator. For example, the first electrode EL1 and the second electrode EL2 contact the working material AM, but is not limited thereto.

27 , the isolation insulating layer SIL may be configured to separate at least a portion of the first conductive layer CT1 from at least a portion of the second conductive layer CT2.

As shown in FIG. 28 , the trench line WL may be formed by patterning the first layer W1 of the wafer WF. In FIG. 28 , the trench line WL is a portion from which the first layer W1 is removed. That is, the trench line WL is between the two portions of the first layer W1.

As shown in FIG. 29 , the second conductive layer CT2 covers the wafer WF, the first conductive layer CT1, the working material AM, the isolation insulating layer SIL, and the second conductive layer CT2. ), a protective layer PL may be selectively formed on the layer. The protective layer PL may include any suitable material and may have an appropriate thickness.

In some embodiments, the protective layer PL may be configured to protect the actuator 120 from ambient exposure and ensure reliability/stability of the actuator 120, but is not limited thereto. As shown in FIG. 29 , a portion of the protective layer PL may be disposed inside the trench line WL.

Optionally, in FIG. 29 , the protective layer PL is patterned to expose a portion of the second conductive layer CT2 and/or the first conductive layer CT1 to expose a connection pad (CPD) electrically connected to an external device. ) can be formed.

As shown in FIG. 30 , the second layer W2 of the wafer WF is patterned so that the second layer W2 forms at least one anchor structure 140 (and/or 240), and the first Layer W1 includes a film structure FS (eg, first membrane 110 and/or second membrane 210) anchored by anchor structure(s) 140 (and/or 240). ), wherein the film structure FS includes the first membrane 110 and/or the second membrane 210. In another aspect, the film structure FS includes a first flap (first portion) and a second flap (second portion). In detail, the second layer W2 of the wafer WF may have a first part and a second part, the first part of the second layer W2 may be removed, and the second layer W2 A second portion of may form anchor structure 140 (and/or 240). Since the first portion of the second layer W2 is removed, the first layer W1 forms the film structure FS. That is, components included in the film structure FS, such as the first membrane 110, the second membrane 210, the first flap and/or the second flap, may be manufactured by the same process, where the same process is shown in FIG. 24 to the same steps as those shown in FIG. 30 .

Optionally, in FIG. 30 , since the insulating layer W3 of the wafer WF exists, after patterning the second layer W2 of the wafer WF, the first layer W1 forms the film structure FS. A portion of the insulating layer W3 corresponding to the first portion of the second layer W2 may also be removed, but is not limited thereto.

In FIG. 30 , since the first portion of the second layer W2 is removed and the first layer W1 forms the film structure FS, the slit 130 is formed due to the trench line WL. ) formed inside and penetrating. Since the slit 130 is formed by the trench line WL, the width of the trench line WL may be designed according to the requirements of the slit 130 . For example, in order for the slit 130 to have the gap 130P having a desired width, the width of the trench line WL may be 5 μm or less, 3 μm or less, or 2 μm or less, but is not limited thereto. In addition, since a portion of the protective layer PL may be disposed inside the trench line WL, the protective layer PL makes the gap 130P of the slit 130 smaller than the width of the trench line WL. can

31 is a schematic diagram showing a cross-sectional view of an acoustic transducer according to another embodiment of the present invention. In another embodiment, compared to the structure shown in FIG. 30 , the structure shown in FIG. 31 does not have the insulating layer W3 of the wafer WF. That is, the first layer W1 is formed directly (in contact with) the second layer W2. As a result, by patterning the second layer W2 of the wafer WF, the film structure FS is directly formed of the first layer W1 of the wafer WF. In this case, the first layer W1 (ie, the film structure FS) may include an insulating layer including an oxide such as silicon dioxide, but is not limited thereto.

Next, a base BS is provided, and the structure shown in FIG. 30 or the structure shown in FIG. 30 can be placed on the base BS to complete the fabrication of the acoustic transducer.

In summary, because of the presence of the slit, the acoustic transducer may generate sound waves and form a vent to suppress the occlusion effect in the first mode, and the acoustic transducer may not vent in the second mode. In other words, the slit acts as a dynamic front vent of the acoustic transducer.

Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that numerous modifications and variations of the devices and methods can be made while maintaining the teachings of the present invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the scope and scope of the appended claims.

Claims (25)

An acoustic transducer disposed within or to be disposed within a wearable sound device, comprising:
a first anchor structure and a second anchor structure;
a first flap; and
2nd flap
Including,
The first flap is:
a first end fixed by the first anchor structure; and
A second end configured to perform a first up-and-down movement to temporarily form a vent
Including,
The second flap is:
a third end fixed by the second anchor structure; and
a fourth end opposite the second end of the first flap and configured to perform a second up-and-down movement to form the vent;
including,
The first flap divides a space into a first volume connected to an ear canal and a second volume connected to a periphery of the wearable sound device;
The ear canal and the periphery are connected through a temporarily opened vent,
The first flap is operated to move in a first direction according to a first signal, and the second flap is operated to move in a second direction opposite to the first direction according to a second signal to form the vent.
acoustic transducer. According to claim 1,
wherein the second end of the first flap does not contact any component of the acoustic transducer when performing the first up-and-down movement. According to claim 1,
wherein the net air movement produced by forming the vent is zero, and forming the vent represents flap movement that opens or closes the vent. According to claim 1,
Wherein the first flap and the second flap divide the space into a first volume connected to the ear canal and a second volume connected to a periphery of the wearable sound device. According to claim 1,
a first airflow is created as the first flap is actuated to move in the first direction;
a second airflow is created as the second flap is actuated to move in the second direction;
wherein the first airflow and the second airflow cancel each other when the first flap and the second flap are operated simultaneously to form the vent. According to claim 1,
momentarily, the second end of the first flap is actuated to have a first displacement in the first direction, and the fourth end of the second flap is actuated to have a second displacement in the second direction;
The acoustic transducer, wherein the first displacement and the second displacement are equal in distance. According to claim 1,
The first signal is a common signal plus an increasing voltage,
The second signal is obtained by adding a reduced voltage to the common signal, the acoustic transducer. According to claim 7,
The increasing voltage and the decreasing voltage are of the same magnitude, the acoustic transducer. According to claim 7,
Acoustic transducer, wherein the common signal comprises a constant bias voltage. According to claim 7,
and when the common signal is a constant bias voltage, the first flap and the second flap are parallel to a horizontal surface and the vent is closed. According to claim 7,
The acoustic transducer, wherein the common signal comprises an input audio signal. According to claim 7,
and when both the increasing voltage and the decreasing voltage are zero, the vent is closed. According to claim 1,
The wearable sound device:
A sensing device configured to produce a sensing result indicative of a detected amount.
Including,
the first signal is a common signal plus an increasing voltage;
According to the detection result, the increased voltage is generated, the acoustic transducer. According to claim 13,
The acoustic transducer, wherein the increasing voltage has a monotonic relationship with the sensing amount indicated by the sensing result. According to claim 13,
wherein the sensing device includes a proximity sensor, the sensed amount represents a distance between an object and the proximity sensor, and a magnitude of the increasing voltage increases as the distance decreases or decreases below a threshold value. According to claim 13,
wherein the sensing device includes a motion sensor, the sensed amount represents motion of the wearable sound device, and a magnitude of the incremental voltage increases as the motion increases. According to claim 13,
wherein the sensing device includes a force sensor, the sensed amount representing a force applied to the force sensor, and as the force increases, a magnitude of the incremental voltage increases. According to claim 13,
wherein the sensing device comprises a light sensor, the sensed amount representing ambient light sensed by the light sensor, and wherein the magnitude of the incremental voltage increases as the ambient light decreases. According to claim 1,
the first flap and the second flap are disposed within a first layer;
wherein the first anchor structure and the second anchor structure are disposed in a second layer. According to claim 1,
Membrane configured to perform acoustic transduction
Acoustic transducer comprising a. According to claim 20,
The acoustic transducer of claim 1, wherein the membrane includes the first flap. According to claim 20,
the wearable sound device includes a drive circuit configured to generate a drive signal for actuating the membrane;
the drive circuit includes an equalizer;
wherein the equalizer is configured to compensate for a degradation in the low frequency response of the acoustic transducer due to the opening of the vent. As a wearable sound device,
an acoustic transducer configured to perform acoustic conversion; and
A housing structure comprising a first housing opening and a second housing opening.
Including,
The acoustic transducer:
at least one anchor structure;
a film structure fixed by the at least one anchor structure; and
an actuator disposed on the film structure and configured to actuate the film structure to temporarily form a vent;
including,
the acoustic transducer is disposed within the housing structure and between the first housing opening and the second housing opening;
The film structure includes a first flap and a second flap,
The first flap includes a first end fixed by the at least one anchor structure, and a second end configured to perform a first up and down movement,
The second flap includes a third end fixed by the at least one anchor structure, and a fourth end opposite to the second end and configured to perform a second vertical movement,
The first flap is operated to move in a first direction according to a first signal, and the second flap is operated to move in a second direction opposite to the first direction according to a second signal to form the vent;
a space formed in the housing structure is divided into a first volume and a second volume by the film structure, the first volume being connected to the first housing opening, and the second volume being connected to the second housing opening;
The wearable sound device, wherein the first volume and the second volume are connected through a temporarily opened vent. delete delete

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